Fabric frame for embroidering machines



Feb. 16 1926.

C. MUENTENER FABRIC FRAME FOR EMBROIDERING MACHINES Feb. 16 192s. 1,5733% C. MUENTENER FfKBRIC FRAME FOR EMBROIDERING MACHINES Filed May 4, 1925 2 Sheets$heet 2 INVENTOR walla 1 7mm 2.2 BY 5 W A'rmw leave marks in the fabric.

needles to beremoved from the machine will Patented Feb. 16, 1926.

UNITED STATES CHRISTIAN MUENTENER, OF WEEHAWKEN HEIGHTS, NEW JERSEY.

FABRIC FRAME FGR EMBROIDERING MACHINES.

Application filed May 4, 1925.

To all whom it may concern:

. Be ,it known that I, CHRISTIAN MUEN- TENER, a citizen of Switzerland, residing at lVeehawken Heights, in the county of Hudson and Stateof New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Fabric Frames for Embroidering Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to fabric frames for embroidering machines of the Shitili or similar type.

When it is desired on this type of ma chine havingfabric frames of the usual construction to produce embroidery for individual pieces of goods, as, for instance, handkerchiefs, stockings or the like, a single continuous piece of fabric must be used, which is spanned over the entire length of the fabric frame and after the work is finished, the fabric must be out up into individual pieces or strips, each containing the embroidered design, and adapted to be separately attached to an individual article or garment for which itwas intended. It is obvious that such method not only consumesmuch time in the cutting up of the embroidered fabric to individual pieces and in the sewing of the same to the articles, but also causes much waste of materia-Lsince enough material for stitching or the formation of seams 'mu'st be .left on each strip or piece around which are located at the intervals between each two adjacent designs, must be removed from the machine prior to the operation, as otherwise they would pierce the fabric at the intervals between adjacent designs and The number of vary with the width' of the designs to be embroidered. Therefore, witheach different design, a new rearrangement of the needles is required, which, when considering that there are hundredsof needles in a machine, w ll occasion additional loss of tune and labor.-

Serial No. 27,634.

ous horizontal row along the entire length of the machine. Each stall of this frame is adapted to receive and removably support a tambour frame, which, similar to that used for hand embroidery, is composed of two hoop-shaped interengaging parts between which the fabric or article to be embroidered is spanned. To enable the spanning of the individual pieces of fabric or articles between the hoops of the tambour, without undue stretching thereof, I employ a base formed with a block having centering means and projecting from the base, said block being of a configuration and size to correspond with that of the inner hoop, so that, after slipping the inner hoop over said block, placing the piece of material flat over them and slipping the outer hoop over the material and the inner hoop,the material will become frictionally engaged between the inner and outer hoops and spanned.

Another object of this invention is to provide means for securely holding the removable tambour frames in operative position within the individual stalls and which will permit these frames to easily and quickly be exchanged.

To produce embroidery or articles which in length or breadth or both are larger than the tambour frames, the parts of the article extending beyond the tambour hoop must be folded up and means are required to retain these parts in folded condition, during the operation, in order to prevent them from spreading over the adjacent tambour frames. It is not possible to use pins for the purpose, since pins always leave perceptible marks, particularly with certain kinds of materials. It is, therefore, another object of my invention to provide suitable clampin means'for this purpose.

My invention will be more fully understood from the detailed description thereof Y by reference to the accompanying drawing, in which similar reference characters denote corresponding parts and in which Fig. 1 is a front View of my device shown ap plied to an embroidering machine of which only so much is shown as is necessary to make my invention clear; Fig. 2 is a ver-v tical section on line 22 of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a cross-section on line 3-3 of Fig. 1; Fig. 1 is a perspective iew of the tambour frame illustrating the mode of spanning the material between the two hoops thereof on the special-baseused therefor; Fig. 5 is a vertical section of the tambour frame and base with the material spanned between the two hoops of said frame; and Fig. 6 is a section of the tambour frame removed from the base with the material'spanned in it and with the unspanned parts thereof folded up and clamped to the tambour frame.

Referring to the drawing, (a and b indicate parts of an embroidering machine of the Shifi'li or similar type, a being in form of a vertical rod or. post and Z2 an L-shaped rail extending longitudinally of the machine and both serving for the suspension of-the fabric frame. 7

My new device comprises a main frame 10, which, in lieu of the usual fabric frame, is adapted to be vertically supported in the machine and which extends the entire length of the latter. The same iscomposed of two longitudinal bars 11, one on top and the other at the bottom, and a plurality of parallel cross bars 12 fixed in said longitudinal bars. In the present example, the cross bars 12 are in form of comparatively thin metal strips bent longitudinally upon themselves. The ends of these bars 12 are adapted to engage transversal recesses 11 made in the bars 11 and to be suitably fastened thereto, as at 11 The strips 12 divide the frame 10 into a plurality of separated compart-' ments or stalls 13 arranged ina continuous horizontal row extending over the entire length of the embroidering machine. For the attachment of the frame to the machine, the lower bar 11 may be formed with a few pins 14 and the rail b with corresponding apertures b to engage the same, while the upper bar 11 may be clamped at intervals in. position by suitable clamps 15 provided on arms 16 movably borne on rods a of which only one is shown in Fig. 1.

The individual articles 0 or pieces of material, such as handkerchiefs, gloves or the like to be embroidered are adapted to be spanned in individaul tambour frames to be supported in the stalls of the, frame 10. Each individual tambour frame is composed of two hoop-shaped members 16, 17 substan- "tially of rectangularshape, capable of beingslipped one over the other like the hoops of any ordinary hand embroidery tambour. Each of these hoops is made of comparativcly thin metal strips doubled upon themselves and which in width correspond substantially with the strips 12. In width, the outer hoop is such as to. fit more or less snugly in a stall 13 of the frame 10. The outer hoop has attached to its upper and lower walls U-shaped members 16, 16 made Extending through perforafront face of the upper one of the two lower rods 19, 20. These outer hoops 16 can be positioned in the stalls 13of ,the frame 10 by hooking their upper extensions 16 to the rod 18 and placing their fingers 16 against the rod 19.

Slidably mounted on the lower rods 19, 20, one for each tambour frame, is a member 21, which is formed with a part 21 adapted, when the slideis moved, say to the right of a stall, to overlap the finger 16 of the hoop 16 and thereby lock the tambour frame in operative position.

To facilitate the spanning of the articles or'p'ieces of material 0 in the tambour frames, I employ a'base block, which may consist of a'base plate 22 from the upper face of which projects a block 23 of a size and shape conformingwiththe innerloop 17, so that the latter can be freely slipped over said block as shown in Fig. 1. To span the material 0. the latter is placed flat against the upper face ofthe block 23, after the hoop 17 has been slipped over it, and the outer hoop 16 is then slipped Ian over the inner hoop to frictionally engage the material 0 between itself and the latter and to draw it sufficlently taut for the embrolderlng operation without, however, un-

duly stretching it. The block has two orprojecting forwardly from the spaces between the two hoops. I The excess or unspanned parts of the material are then gathered or rolled up, as at c, in Figs 6, to

be out of the; way of the adjoining stall and are clamped in the folded condition by a U-shaped spring clamp 25 or thelike. The spindles 19 and 20 may be lowered or raised to enable the attachment of tambour frames of different length. To this end, the members 12 may each have a plurality of apertures 12? in which the rods 19, 20 can be mounted and which are arranged perpendicularly to the bars 12 and spaced uniformly, the apertures 12 in the different members 12 being in alignment with one another. The rods 19, 20 may be secured against lateral movement by pins or the like 26 borne in their extreme ends.

For the purpose of permitting the use of tambour framesof different width, the longitudinal bars 11 may have a great number of closely arranged'recesses 11, as shown in Fig. 1, whereby the width of the stalls can be made variable.

It will be obvious that with my new device it is possible to produce embroidery by an embroidering machine of the Shiffli type or the like directly on articles of different size and of any kind of material, without undue stretching of the latter What I claim is 1. 111* an embroidering machine of the character described, a device consisting of a single frame adapted to extend vertically the entire length of the machine and divided longitudinally by cross members in to a plurality of stalls or compartments, a set of parallel rods extending longitudinally of the machine and borne in said cross members, sets of individual tambour frames adapted to snugly fit in said stalls, each set comprising an outer rectangular frame formed with longitudinal end extensions adapted at their opposite ends to removably engage said parallel rods, and an inner rectangular frame capable of frictionally engaging a piece of material between itself and said outer frame, and a locking member for locking said outer frame of each set in operative position.

2. In an embroidering machine of the character described, a device consisting of a single frame adapted to extend vertically the entire length of the machine and divided longitudinally by cross members into a plurality of stalls or compartments, a set of parallel rods extending longitudinally of the machine and adjustably borne in said cross members, sets of individual tambour frames adapted to snugly fit in said stalls, each set comprising an outer rectangular frame formed with longitudinal end extensions adapted at their opposite ends to removably engage said parallel rods, and an inner rectangular frame capable of frictionally engaging apiece of material between itself and said outer frame, and a locking member for locking said outer frame of each set in operative position.

In an embroidering machine of the character described, a device consisting of a single frame adapted to extend vertically the entire length of the machine and divided longitudinally by perforated cross members into a plurality of stalls or com partments, a set of parallel rods extending longitudinally of the machine and adjustably borne in the perforations of said cross members, sets of individual tambour frames adapted to snugly fit in said stalls, each set comprising an outer rectangular frame formed with longitudinal end extensions adapted at their opposite ends to removably engage said parallel rods, and an inner rectangular frame capable of frictionally engaging a piece of material between itself and said outer frame, and a locking member for locking said outer frame of each set in operative position.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

CHRISTIAN MUENTENER. 

